The sustained uptrend in property markets over the last couple of years has provided Indian corporates an avenue to enhance their financial flexibility and streamline operations by increasingly monetising non-core assets, particularly land, buildings and real estate properties.
By capitalising on favourable market conditions, several organisations across industries have strategically monetised these non-core assets across the country.
The move is not only helping companies unlock capital tied up in underutilised assets but also enabling them to focus resources on core business activities, reduce debt and improve overall financial health.
As property valuations remain strong, this approach continues to gain traction as a preferred strategy for optimising asset portfolios and driving long-term growth.
“With appreciating property prices, rising infrastructure investments and economic growth creating new opportunities, Indian companies are prioritising sustainable, value-driven growth in a competitive landscape. The growing preference to monetise non-core real assets highlights a dual advantage—improved financial flexibility and sharper operational focus. This strategy enables companies to strengthen their balance sheets by channelling capital into core operations, reducing debt and funding expansion plans,” said Rohit Berry, partner and president-strategy, risk and transactions, Deloitte South Asia.
Leading Indian organisations in engineering, telecom, metal, pharmaceuticals, paint manufacturing, banking, chemical, tile manufacturing, fast moving consumer goods and textile manufacturing have monetised their realty assets across the country in deals totalling more than Rs 14,200 crore over the last two years, showed data compiled by Propstack.
“The growing trend of Indian corporates monetising non-core assets is a win-win for both businesses and the economy. By unlocking value from underutilised real estate, companies are optimising resources. For developers, this creates new avenues to undertake new projects and work on infrastructure, fuelling growth in the realty sector. Ultimately, such strategic asset monetisation is contributing to economic growth by enabling new infrastructure developments and job creation,” said Sandeep Runwal, MD, Runwal Realty, which recently acquired Kansai Nerolac Paints’ 4-acre land parcel in Mumbai’s Worli for around Rs 800 crore.
Apart from Kansai Nerolac, Bombay Dyeing & Manufacturing Company, Hindalco Industries, Tech Mahindra, Vodafone Idea, BSNL, Tata Communications, Tata Coffee, Suzlon Energy, Sanofi Healthcare India, Godrej & Boyce Manufacturing Company, Larsen & Toubro, Graphite India, Greaves Cotton, State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Indusind Bank and Federal Bank are among the corporates that have monetised such assets.
They have either sold the assets on an outright basis or have entered into revenue or space sharing joint development agreements with realty developers.
According to Berry, by divesting these assets, organisations are not only boosting liquidity but are also aligned with their long-term growth objective of maximising shareholder value.
With real estate values appreciating in key markets, this has proven to be an opportune time for corporates to realise significant returns from their properties. Additionally, sale-and-leaseback models have also emerged as a choice, allowing companies to retain operational continuity while simultaneously monetising their assets.
HDFC Bank, as part of its post-merger integration with HDFC, has decided to sell several non-core real estate assets in key urban locations. The move is aimed at streamlining its property portfolio and creating additional liquidity to further strengthen its already robust financial position.
Renewable energy company Suzlon Energy recently sold its corporate headquarters in Pune and entered a sale-and-leaseback agreement, allowing it to continue operations while unlocking funds to reinvest in business growth and operational efficiency.
In September, Hindalco Industries sold its over 24.5-acre land parcel in Thane’s Kalwa locality to its group entity Birla Estates for over Rs 537 crore. Wadia Group entity Bombay Dyeing & Manufacturing Company sold its 22-acre land parcel in Mumbai’s Worli to Japan’s Sumitomo Corporation for over Rs 5,000 crore.
Corporate monetisation of real estate assets has brought a steady influx of high-value properties into the market. This has attracted significant interest from institutional investors, developers and real estate investment trusts (REITs), further stimulating activity in the sector.
